This invention relates to a pallet.
Pallets have traditionally been made from timber. The use of timber in a world which is increasingly sensitive to ecological factors, is becoming unacceptable. Timber also carries with it the risk of transferring diseases and insect pests, a danger which is compounded by the use of timber pallets in international trade.
As an alternative to timber pallets is known to make pallets from a plastics material. Thermoplastic materials, which are recyclable, do however display a number of disadvantages such as an unfavourable cost to strength ratio, the existence of a creep characteristic which leads to an over-design situation with a resulting higher cost, and the requirement to make use of flame retardants, which are expensive, to minimize fire hazards. Thermosetting plastic materials on the other hand are not recyclable and, generally, are subject to slow and costly manufacturing techniques.
All-steel pallets have been used but have only enjoyed limited success. Steel pallets are heavy and consequently are expensive. In an attempt to address the weight problem it has been proposed to make pallets from mesh, eg. welded wire mesh. A problem which arises in this connection is that it is difficult to achieve a predetermined ratio, of the order of 40%, of the bottom surface area to the upper surface area of the pallet. This is necessary to reduce stress concentrations when pallets are stacked one on the other.
It has also been proposed to make use of recycled rubber which is bonded to steel sections to make a composite pallet. The resulting construction is however heavy and can be expensive.
A need exists for a pallet which does not host insects and which is relatively inexpensive, robust and with good loading characteristics.